Until the agent took Luthor away, Clark emerged from the shadows in the corner of the room. His eyelashes fluttered lightly as he quickly sized up Shiller in front of him.
"What were you talking about just now?" Shiller asked.
"He has a plan," Clark said immediately, "He wants to give the electronic lifeform a body, then use a trap to force it to use the body, and finally trap it in the body and destroy it."
"What kind of trap?"
"Intentionally create a conflict with the president, use the excuse of self-preservation to build a mechanical army, then cause an accident with his sister, forcing the electronic lifeform to control a mechanical body to save her, and then lock it inside."
Shiller paused for only about a second before turning around and heading out. Clark called out to him, "Where are you going?"
"Back to the base, then find a good place for him."
Clark caught up with his steps, turned and asked him, "What's wrong with this plan?"
"You should ask where there's nothing wrong with this plan," Shiller didn't even look at him, quickly walked down and said, "Why would you think Alexander Luthor is building a mechanical army to destroy the electronic lifeform?"
"If not, then for what?"
"Of course, to transform it into a weapon. Grab it one second, and the next second, let it lead the mechanical army, overthrow the president's rule, and become the leader of the Federation himself."
"How is he going to control it?"
"Since he has a way to restrict it in the body, he naturally has a way to control it. If he can't control it, he can also negotiate terms, as long as he can bring down the president."
"But he said he would let me destroy the mechanical body."
"A simple ruse. If you destroy that mechanical body, but the electronic lifeform survives and overthrows Batman's rule, what would Batman think of you?"
"It makes no sense, I'm not this universe's Superman."
"Yes, he probably didn't anticipate that. But the ruse is just a convenient move, successful or not doesn't matter; if it doesn't disgust Batman, forget it, the main point is to overthrow his rule."
Clark squinted his eyes and said, "No wonder he said that guy set him up; when he wanted revenge, I felt something was off. But this plan indeed sounds very plausible."
"This universe's Batman is strong, which proves that this universe has a high level of power. Both Superman and Luthor are exemplary among their counterparts. Where did you go in this universe?"
"Injustice League's universe," Clark replied, "He wants to rescue that Batman."
Shiller shook his head. Clark asked again, "What's wrong? Is there a problem?"
"Another silly idea from Batman," Shiller said somewhat impatiently, "thinking that since he can't leave, let Superman go, but splitting up forces at this time is extremely foolish, luckily he remembered to call you over."
Clark sighed lightly and said, "Still can't avoid going, though, that universe's Superman indeed went too far."
"How's it going on the dark universe side?"
"Spider Man went there, and his influence is limited, but he still solved many problems, allowing Batman to deal with the electronic lifeform."
They took the elevator to the floor of the Luther Group. Shiller stopped in front of his car and said, "I'm taking Luther to the Batcave, you go look after his sister, don't let Selina be in any danger."
"I don't understand, if Luther's plan isn't needed, why let his sister continue to contact the electronic lifeform?"
"That's part of my plan, or rather, Iron Man's. Emotional matters aren't achieved overnight; someone must play the role of the enlightener. Miss Luthor is a smart person; she knows what to do."
Finishing his words, Shiller got in the car. Watching the car slowly drive away, Clark sighed. Then he flew to Luthor Manor, and when he landed on the balcony of Selina Luthor's room, he startled her.
"Goodness, why are you here?" Selina, after saying this, felt something was wrong and said, "How could my brother allow you to come here?"
"Does it mean I can't come just because he doesn't allow it?"
"Um... wait, you aren't Superman, are you? Which imposter are you?"
Clark shook his head and said, "I am Superman, just not this universe's Superman. I know you have contact with the electronic lifeform; I need to come and protect you, to prevent it from betraying you."
Selina slowly furrowed her eyebrows, seemingly considering the current situation. Clark briefly introduced Luther's plan to her, then said, "This plan is theoretically feasible, so I got deceived by him. Do you think your brother would use this method to overthrow Batman's rule?"
"It's hard to say," Selina said thoughtfully, walking around the sofa and placing her hand on its back. "Honestly, I also think he wouldn't wipe out the electronic life form. Even if he destroys the main body, he'd definitely keep a backup. That's just how he is. As for whether he'd clash with Batman, it depends on the threat level of this electronic life form. If the plan goes smoothly, he'd eventually fall out with Batman; but if there are any hiccups..."
"He wants to use me, and I think I can use him," Clark said, lowering his gaze. "If I get injured or nearly killed while destroying that body, what will Luther do?"
Selina spun around, staring incredulously at Clark, as if trying to discern something different about him. But the man in front of her resembled a snow sculpture, an enigmatic blend of warmth and coldness blended in his classical and handsome features, akin to a remarkably forlorn traveler.
"He'd go mad," Selina said. "Superman is special to him, not just as an enemy, but almost like his Jesus Christ. A fanatic wouldn't allow anyone to harm their god."
"Then he'd thoroughly oppose the electronic life form, wouldn't he?"
"Don't do this," Selina quickly stepped forward, frowning. "You can't hurt someone this way. It's too cruel."
Clark, like a statue come to life, replied in a light-hearted tone, "It seems you have great faith in my moral compass."
"You are Superman," Selina said, looking into his eyes. "Superman wouldn't stoop to such despicable tactics, not even Carl Ai'er would. What kind of monster are you really?"
"So I am just talking," Clark chuckled. "The agent has already taken him to the Batcave; he probably won't have the chance to build his mechanical army now."
Selina sighed in relief, then felt a chill down her spine. She couldn't help but step away from the Superman in front of her and said, "Are you sure you're here to protect me?"
"Of course. But I'm also curious. That Lex in my universe doesn't have a sister. Are you and he siblings?"
"I don't want to talk about it. If you insist on staying here, then stay. I'm going upstairs to rest."
Clark watched her ascend the stairs in silence.
Back in her room, Selina took out her phone. She typed a line in the input box: "It must be my brother who sent him. This is a conspiracy against the two of us. Did you hear what he just said? You must stay calm and not harm Superman, or my brother will go mad and come after you."
The other person took a long time to reply with just one word: "Understood."
When Luther woke up, he found himself not in a hospital room, but in a curious room. Judging by the decor, it should be the Batcave.
Don't ask how he determined this — generally speaking, people don't have a penchant for imprinting bat motifs on their home's walls, especially not a motif three feet tall. The entire wall was covered in huge bat symbols. If he couldn't see it, he'd be blind.
What Luther was now pondering is why he appeared in the Batcave. Although he had intended to convey his plans to Batman via Superman, to rightfully build his mechanical army, he's not one of those Arkham Asylum madmen. Why did Batman bring him to the Batcave?
Luther is a legitimate businessman. Even if arrested due to some allegations, he could be bailed out. His lawyer would soon be approaching law enforcement. If he goes missing now, no department could handle the fallout. Besides, the Luther Group can't do without him, and the shareholders would do everything they could to find him. When the situation blows up, Batman—the president—wouldn't escape unscathed.
As he pondered these matters, he noticed shadowy figures outside the door, but judging by the body types, they didn't look like Batman, and there seemed to be more than one person.
Luther got out of bed, covered his chest, and coughed a few times to signal the people outside that he had no hostile intent, but the others didn't respond. He poked his head out for a look—what a sight: Iron Man and Black Widow.
Luther had tickets to the Battleworld, but people like him, who are quite conceited, aren't fond of collaborating with counterparts from other universes, so communication was little. But they recognized the more famous heroes of both worlds, even if they'd never met them face-to-face.
At this moment, Iron Man and Black Widow were debugging a mecha, or rather, a robot. An unfamiliar person was examining equipment, seemingly a scientist, too.
"You're awake," Natasha said, looking up. "Just in time to check this parameter. The ankle's rotational force is too poor, it can't execute a flying kick properly, not like this."
"It's not just an ankle problem. Without using a flexible Achilles tendon, it can't meet our requirements," Stark said, frowning.
"But if we use biomolecular material, the strength of the entire lower leg will drastically decrease, the running speed will reduce, it's entirely a losing trade-off," Doom added.
Luther was genuinely intrigued. He knew Iron Man was a top scientist, so the other person collaborating with him must be formidable too, and Black Widow might be assisting in the experiment. What on earth was this extravagant combination designing?
Regardless, Luther was also a scientist, and he considered himself the world's greatest scientist. Encountering such an academic discussion, he naturally felt compelled to join.
He walked over and first scrutinized the body, then couldn't help but marvel: A truly perfect mechanical body.
The entire body's height was about two meters one. Unlike common robots, this mechanical body had bionic skin, meaning it wasn't simply an iron shell. The surface skin was soft, albeit transparent, and the mechanical structure inside was clearly visible.
The internal structure differed somewhat from the human race, lacking human organs. It centered around the chest's reactor, but various pipelines and joint components resembled humans. Overall, it straddled the line between robot and bioroid, combining a technological aesthetic with a touch of uncanny valley eeriness.
"What is this?" Luther asked.
"It's the body we're preparing for the electronic life form," Natasha explained, arms crossed. "Forget your foolish and tedious plan. With that time, you'd be better off perfecting this body."